How do I choose the bestpre-school for my child?

EARLYYEARS

Supporting Parents

It is always a good sign in a pre-school when children and their parents are madeto feel welcome every time they visit. When pre-schools work in partnership withparents and value parents being present in the pre-school, it can improve howand what your child learns now and into the future.

Listed below are 8 examples of just some of the things to look out for whenchoosing a pre-school which can indicate quality:

SUPPORTIVE AND CARING RELATIONSHIPS ARE ENCOURAGED It’s important that pre-schools operate in such a way that children and familiescan develop a relationship with the pre-school teacher. For this to be possible itusually means that your child is in the care of the same pre-school teacher mostdays. This allows you and your child to get to know the teacher and the teacherto know you and your child helping to develop connections.

WANTING TO GET TO KNOW YOUR CHILD THROUGH YOUPre-schools will often ask you for information about your child and their family, sothey can get to know your child better. Knowing unique things about each child,like a favourite pet’s name, languages spoken at home and the names ofbrothers, sisters and grandparents help pre-school teachers develop arelationship with children and understand them more.

It is widely understood that pre-school careand education offers many long-termbenefits to a child’s overall developmentthroughout their primary school years andbeyond. However, it is also said that the fullbenefits of pre-school can only be felt if it isquality pre-school care and education. As aparent therefore it’s important to be able torecognise what quality looks like. This cansometimes be puzzling particularly if this isthe first time for you and your child to visitor join a pre-school.

How do I choose the bestpre-school for my child?

CHILDREN’S LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT IS SHARED As parents you can tell your pre-school teacher lots of things about your childwhich can support their learning and development within the pre-school. Youknow your child’s personality, strengths, likes, dislikes and the areas where theyneed a little help, so it’s both important for your child’s learning and developmentand for the pre-school teacher that you are invited to share this information.

There is a good chance that your child’s pre-school teacher can also tell you lotsof interesting things about your child; children often display skills and evenpreferences for things that they haven’t shown you at home. For example, yourchild might like to be helpful with younger children, showing great kindness andpatience, or they might enjoy a certain food that you wouldn’t usually have at home.

OPEN DOOR POLICY Some pre-schools have an open-door policy, this is where no appointment isnecessary for a parent to visit the pre-school and parents are made to feel welcomeat any time. This can give parents the chance to have regular informal chats withtheir child’s pre-school teacher at drop off and collection times.

Being able to chat informally to your child’s pre-school teacher is useful becauseoften as a parent you can have little pieces of information about your child whichwill really help their day in pre-school go well. For example, you may wish to tellyour child’s pre-school teacher they didn’t sleep very well so could be tired, orthey are excited to finish off a Lego building they started yesterday. It can also bereassuring to know that you can see your child at any time, particularly if it is yourchild’s first time away from you or your family.

LEARNING JOURNALSSome pre-schools have more organised activities to help pre-school teachersand parents to both be a part of children’s learning and development in acombined way. For example, many pre-schools have Learning Journals for eachchild. This is a handmade book that follows children’s individual learning anddevelopment throughout the year. It uses items such as photographs of childrenplaying and pieces of their artwork, and sometimes photographs or artwork fromhome are also included if the child wishes. Some pre-schools also use onlinesystems to communicate and share children’s learning with parents.

When there are chances for parents and pre-schools to come together and sharechildren’s experiences it supports children to feel a sense of belonging, andparents and teachers can both feel more involved.

PARENT HANDBOOKA Parent Handbook is a collection of useful information put together by the pre-school that will help you understand how the pre-school works on a day to daybasis. This should tell you about the service and its policies and procedures suchas opening and closing times. Some pre-schools have a Partnership with Parents’Policy in the handbook. This policy will explain how the pre-school will go aboutbuilding a relationship with you and your family, and how you and your child canhave a meaningful voice in your child’s early education and become involved inthe pre-school. There are a number of policies that your pre-school is required toshare with you on registration. Contact our helpline for more information on earlyyears policies Tel: 01 8874477 or email helpline@npc.ie.

THE VOICE OF THE CHILD IS VALUEDIt is important that your child is seen as an individual in their pre-school and eachchild’s individual voice is heard. The word “voice” is a term which refers to morethan just your child’s spoken voice, but also includes your child’s preferences,choices, thoughts and feelings. For this to happen the surroundings that childrenplay in should be able to offer children choices about important things like whothey play with, what they play, where they play and for how long, also giving themopportunities to rest if they wish.

When choosing a pre-school for the first time it may be difficult to decide if thepre-school is doing this. However, some clues that a pre-school thinks your child’sindividual voice is important is when pre-school routines are flexible, for examplechildren can finish an activity or game, even if it runs a little over time or they havean opportunity to go back to it.

Another sign is when children’s work is displayed around the pre-school at theireye level with paintings or drawings showing children’s imagination and creativity.For example, some children might like to paint a purple pumpkin in December ora Christmas tree in March! What children are thinking about and what they like todraw or paint isn’t always the same as other children or adults, or as traditions orthe seasons might tell us. So, when you see this in children’s art it shows thatchildren are supported in being creative and given the time and opportunity tofigure things out for themselves.

LEARNING THROUGH PLAYPlay Play Play!!! It is widely understood that play is the most natural andeffective way for children to learn between the ages of birth and six years. Aistearthe Early Childhood Curriculum Framework in pre-schools, informs us that whenchildren play they are learning a great deal about themselves and everything thatgoes on in the world around them while having fun. Therefore, giving children thetime and opportunity to play freely and imaginatively, is one of the most importantand valuable things that a pre-school can offer your child.

Some signs that learning through play and creativity is an important part of thepre-school day are that:

Children are given lots of time to play Children are given choices about who and what they play with and for how longChildren have access to lots of areas in the pre-school that encourage playsuch as a home corner (could be a space set up as a kitchen)Children have access to a construction area where children can play andbuild with different materials using their imagination and creativity. Children can access an art area at all times where they can freely express theirideas and imagination through free drawing, painting, modelling and creatingthroughout the day (free meaning their own ideas and not teacher lead) Toy boxes are labelled with both words and photos, so children know where tofind and return toys which will support independenceChildren are given opportunities to play both indoors and outdoors whenpossible throughout the day

OUTDOOR PLAY OPPORTUNITIES Outdoor play is important for your child and it has many health and well-beingbenefits which cannot be matched indoors in the classroom. Things like running,jumping, climbing and adventurous play are not only fun for children, but they arealso important for your child’s growth and development.

When considering your pre-school’s outdoor play area keep in mind that for yourchild to get the most out of the outdoor play it should be a space where childrencan be curious and play using their imagination with the opportunity to do thingslike running, balancing, digging, climbing and exploring.

Not all pre-school services will have their own garden attached to the pre-school,but they usually can still provide quality access to an outdoor space each day.Pre-schools will usually look for weatherproof clothing that allows your child toplay outside in all weathers. These can include welly boots, waterproof jacketsand gloves to keep your child warm and dry, and sun cream and hats in warmweather to protect them from the sun. It’s important that you provide your childrenwith these items, so they can enjoy outdoor play whatever the weather.

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National Parents Council Primary12 Marlborough Court, Marlborough Street, Dublin 1Tel: +353 1 887 4034 • Fax: +353 1 887 4489 • Email: info@npc.ie

Helpline: Tel: +353 1 887 4477Email: helpline@npc.ie

www.npc.ie

Supporting Parents